It took me about one and a half months to read War
and Peace. Tolstoy's magnum opus, first published in the 1860s, has been acclaimed as one of the greatest novels ever
written, though the popular perception is that it is a very difficult book to finish reading. The length of the novel is clearly a huge
barrier to reading it, though unfamiliarity with the historical
context adds to the difficulties.
To appreciate the book fully, it is useful to recall
the historical context. The story is set in the early nineteenth
century, spanning the period from 1805 to 1820. Its main characters
all come from the Russian nobility, and the narrative arc follows
their fortunes, set against the backdrop of the tumultuous events
surrounding Napoleon's invasion of Russia.
